AYRSHIRE College has been nominated for five awards at three upcoming ceremonies.

The college has been shortlisted for its employer engagement strategy and outstanding work to tackle gender inequalities, while two of its staff members and one student have been recognised with individual nominations.

Heather Dunk, Principal at Ayrshire College, said: “I am very proud of our staff and students for their outstanding contributions to the college and our wider communities. Being shortlisted for these prestigious national awards is a major achievement for the individuals and teams concerned, and I wish them success at the forthcoming ceremonies.”

The Making Your Business Our Business was shortlisted at the College Development Network Awards in the College Business Award category.

A major strength of the college’s approach is to get employers involved in the curriculum planning process. 

In 2015-16, 620 businesses engaged in training provided by Ayrshire College, 1,700 employees undertook training and nearly 900 Modern Apprentices were trained.

At The Herald Diversity Awards, the college’s #ThisAyrshireGirlCan initiative, which aims to encourage girls and women into science, engineering and technology careers, has been nominated in the Best Diversity Marketing and Social Issues Campaign category.

Sara Turkington, who is an Equality and Inclusion Officer at the college, has been shortlisted in the Rising Star category. Sara has been instrumental in raising awareness of LGBT+ issues to staff and students, setting up successful LGBT+ conversation cafes to encourage discussion.

Construction lecturer Billy Hutchison has made the final three of the SQA Champion category at the SQA Star Awards in recognition of his role in designing and delivering construction courses at all levels.

At the same awards ceremony, Sport and Fitness student Natasha Kerr is in the running for College Candidate of the Year. 

This is the fifth consecutive year an Ayrshire College student has been shortlisted in the category.

Natasha dedicated a staggering 800 hours to volunteering work with various sports group in her final year at the college, coaching badminton, basketball and hockey.